


Watch as I dive in

by Graceknowsworst



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Day At The Beach, Emotions, Gen, Ocean, Religious Imagery & Symbolism, Spiritual, Swimming
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-11
Updated: 2019-06-11
Packaged: 2020-04-24 16:17:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 557
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19176898
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Graceknowsworst/pseuds/Graceknowsworst
Summary: Billy Hargrove likes to swim.





	Watch as I dive in

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: Steve isn't isn this, but I imagine later on they get together so Im skrry. Ok so, I live in Australia and Billy's experience swimming is based on my experience as a coastal dweller (yes, broken sholder surfers and everything I'm sorry) ummm, so if american beaches are different or the whole assembly thing doesnt happen, sorry, this is based off my own experience. Please comment if you have any criticisms, I would love to hear from you. Xoxo also, im sorry about the format, I am not a good writer

Not everyone in California was a beach bum, at least, Billy wasn't. He preferred late night, at home rock concerts where everything was a little sweaty and everyone seemed to meld together. He preferred to spend his days in his room, with the window open, late afternoons sleepy from the heat. That was his kind of downtime. 

Though he wasn't a beach bum, it was still a large part of his life. The culture inevitably becoming a part of him. His school would host assemblies explaining the danger of rough water, the local lifeguards tan and muscled, hair bleached by the sun in their red and yellow uniforms teaching them the basics of CPR. Billy loved those assemblies. 

Billy was good at swimming, he wasn't as smooth in the water as some of his classmates but he could hold his own. He liked to dive deep and feel the pressure of the water on his skull. Feel the sand touch his fingertips, open his eyes and experience the sting of salt, never closing them. In some parts of the more shallow water, the salt was more concentrated and he would bounce right back up after diving in. It made it more challenging to dive, but Billy was happy to play the game. Swimming deeper, sitting on the ocean floor. His arms strengthening from the effort of keeping him down. 

He swam in the winter. It wasn't uncommon, but the majority in the water were surfers with their rash suits and their die hard committment. He'd seen teenage boys walk out of the water, surf board under one arm, the other loose.  
"Yeah, I broke my shoulder." As they left to walk to the hospital, he could see them stare longingly at the waves, calling them back. Billy understood this. There was something about the rise of the wave, the feeling of being lifted up, up, up. High enough to touch God.

On winter days, there were often large grey clouds, especially in the morning, still there before the wind had a chance to blow them away. The early morning sun would spill through, far out into deeper waters. The beams of light, shining, making the surface glitter. Billy would swim out there, far enough where usually only surfers would go, or old men who had spent their lives on the beach becoming brown and leathery. Those men would get plaques drilled into the rocks when they died. 

Billy didn't have a religion really, his mother was Catholic sure. His father was too but he didn't practice. Billy wasn't sure if he believed in anything, he didn't even believe in himself. But there was that moment were Billy would swim out and float in that patch of sunlight, the breeze, just too cool to be comfortable, would brush against his wet skin, his ears under the water, blocked, his arms spread out in a mockery of Christ and he would wonder about the water unknown, deeper than he was willing to go. In that moment, looking up at the broken clouds, looking for a sign, looking for anything at all, Billy would be willing to believe in something, maybe not God and maybe not religion. But, he could believe in the ocean. It was real and it was alive and Billy could feel it. And that was enough.

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted Billy to have a religious connection with the ocean because I often spend time at the beach and think about religion and spirituality. Thanks for reading xoxo


End file.
